WEDNESDAY 4/9Â Â
(BOOKS) I was there last year when, also in April, Hanif Abdurraqib spoke at Town Hall Seattle. He took to the stage wearing a Sue Bird jersey—on the same day it was announced that Bird joined the Seattle Storm ownership group—and passed out flowers to people in the crowd. He read from his then-new release, There’s Always This Year: On Basketball and Ascension, which went on to land on the longlist for the 2024 National Book Award for Nonfiction. But the true magic came during the generous Q&A session after his reading. Abdurraqib answered question after question about his process (he prefers to be curious over authoritative), his favorite Janet Jackson album (The Velvet Rope), and his 248 pairs of sneakers. He shared insight for folks just getting started as writers and talked about the importance of collaborating with others, including the young voices he mentors. And then he stuck around to sign hundreds of books, talking to each fan like a friend, far longer than the average author would. When Abdurraqib is in Seattle, all of Seattle should go. (Town Hall, 7:30 pm, all ages) MEGAN SELING
THURSDAY 4/10Â Â
Once Was: A Solo Show from KSRA
Correction: The opening reception at Gallery ERGO is Friday, April 11, not Thursday, as originally posted. We regret the error. Here are some recommendations for your Thursday.
(VISUAL ART) It’s starting to feel like Old Seattle was all just a dream. The longer time marches on, the more my brain believes Bauhaus never really stood tall at the corner of Melrose and Pine, the Lusty Lady’s iconic pink marquee never really flashed punny messages over First Avenue, and the way the Broadway Rite Aid’s fantastic neon sign glowed over my bus stop when catching the number 8 bus off the hill was simply a fever dream brought on by dehydration from staying out too late at rock shows. Thankfully, artist KSRA captures our memories with her new show, Once Was, at Gallery ERGO. Iconic signage—Bush Gardens, the gift shop in the International District, and yes, the Lusty Lady—are recreated at a smaller scale in painstaking detail, but morphed and bent to look like they were pulled from that moment of recollection when the images we know to be true haven’t quite sharpened in our mind’s eye. The show is up through May 4, with an opening reception Friday, April 11. (Gallery ERGO, 5–8 pm, all ages) MEGAN SELING
FRIDAY 4/11Â Â
(TALK/MUSIC) James Beard Award-winning food writer, chef, and documented bagel enthusiast J. Kenji Lopez-Alt will sit alongside Rick Steves, the hometown hero who's always trying to get outta here, and talented music critic Ann Powers for this edition of Live Wire Radio. The honest and funny conversational show hosted by Luke Burbank will be elevated by a live performance from Pedro the Lion, who former Stranger writer Jas Keimig once described as "big-dick-quasi-emo-indie-rock." (Benaroya Hall, 7:30 pm, all ages) LINDSAY COSTELLO
SATURDAY 4/12Â Â
Tomo Nakayama, Bryan John Appleby, Tiny Vipers
(MUSIC) On May 2 Tiny Vipers (Jesy Fortino) will release Illusionz Vol. 1 (1997-2004), her first full length album since 2009’s Weak Moments of the Shadows. She’s been prolific since, of course, with several EPs, an instrumental album in 2015, and collaborations with Grouper, the Sight Below, and Balmorhea. But it’s her stark, unapologetic solo material that stabs through my heart like a harpoon, twisting into my guts and releasing all the demons and emotions I tried so hard to bury. (How dare you.) Fortino recorded the songs between 1997 and 2004, and without obvious nods to the times, manages to pulse with that same energy—before 9/11 and after, during Bush and before Obama, when Seattle was still somewhat affordable and artists could still take risks. Each track feels like a time capsule. Sorry in advance for devolving into a blathering mess if she reaches into her archives to play “Dreamer.” (Baba Yaga, 7 pm, 21+) MEGAN SELING
Today is also Record Store Day—check out Dave Segal's recommendations here!
SUNDAY 4/13Â Â
(FILM/CRAFTS) It's never a bad time to revisit the '86 dark fantasy Labyrinth, which only serves to bolster the theory that David Bowie was a creation pulled straight from Jim Henson's fantastical imagination. Grab your needlecraft projects in honor of Henson's oddball brilliance and Bowie's cinematic mystique—this screening of the flick encourages fiber fun and socializing with a lights-on experience. Rumor has it that a Labyrinth remake is the next project Robert Eggers has coming down the pipeline, so revisiting the original might help prepare you for whatever freakish, puppet-laden twists he's envisioning. Maybe try embroidering one? (SIFF Cinema Uptown, noon, all ages) LINDSAY COSTELLO
MONDAY 4/14Â Â
Book Signing with Sarah Ahn of Ahnest Kitchen
(BOOKS/FOOD) Mother-daughter duo Nam Soon Ahn and Sarah Ahn have captured the hearts of millions of viewers on Sarah's TikTok account @ahnestkitchen, which offers a sweet, poignant glimpse at their relationship and mutual love of Korean cooking. Their debut cookbook Umma ("mom" in Korean) includes conversations between the two that range from funny to relatable to tear-jerking, plus gems of culinary wisdom gleaned from Nam Soon's decades in the kitchen and recipes fine-tuned by America's Test Kitchen. At this signing, you'll get to meet Sarah and Nam Soon and get your cookbook personalized. (Book Larder, 6 pm, all ages) JULIANNE BELL
TUESDAY 4/15Â Â
(MUSIC) Even if you don't consider yourself to be a classical music fan, I encourage you to let Hong Kong-born pianist Tiffany Poon's serene third album, Diaries: Schumann, wash over you. On the album, Poon takes the works of the German Romantic era composer Robert Schumann and applies her own perspective for a wistful solo-piano journey of childhood recollections. She will make her Seattle debut with songs from the album as well as pieces from Haydn, Chopin, Debussy, and Ravel. (Benaroya Hall Illsley Ball Nordstrom Recital Hall, 7 pm, all ages) AUDREY VANN
